3 Healthcare IT Trends for 2013 and Beyond

3 Healthcare IT trends that shares Thomas Edison’s vision for healthcare in 2013 and beyond

Healthcare IT is blazing hot right now with the HIT market expected to reach $78 billion this year and maintain a 5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the next five years reaching $92 billion by 2016, according to research by Compass Intelligence. That growth will create a demand for more qualified healthcare IT professionals from an educational HIT program in order to build a larger pool of knowledgeable and credentialed applicants. With the record level of rising healthcare costs, the recent passing of PPACA, and healthcare reform initiatives including Meaningful Use, ICD-10, and ACOs, there is a perfect storm developing in healthcare with healthcare IT sitting right at the intersection.

Last month, I saw a great picture tweet from GE Healthcare’s CTO, Mike Harsh that displays a picture of Thomas Edison describing his vision for healthcare.

Edison states,

“the doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of diseases.”

The foresight of Edison’s views on healthcare surprisingly mirrors the vision and goals that many of us share today in healthcare. Healhcare is at the cusp of innovation with the advent of Healthcare IT has the potential to meet Edison’s vision of healthcare and play an instrumental role in addressing the problems large problems in our broken healthcare system.

Next week marks the start of the seventh annual National Health IT week where public and private healthcare constituents will work in partnership to educate industry and policy stakeholders on the value of health IT for the US healthcare system. So, how will Health IT make a difference a year from now at the next National Health IT Week?

The following are three Healthcare IT trends that shares Edison’s vision for healthcare in 2013 and beyond:

1. mHealth

According to a study by Vitera Healthcare Solutions, 91 percent of physicians are interested in mobile EHRs. In the future, both physicians and consumers will rely on mobile health applications, smartphones, and tablets. Physicians can utilize their smartphones and iPads to review patient charts, document patient encounters, and electronically prescribe medications to their patients.

The market opportunity for mobile healthcare is expected to be worth $5.9 billion by 2017 in the United States. Expect the mobile health market to continue to disrupt and create new business models. mHealth will allow physicians to meet Edison’s vision to interest their patients in diet and prevention of diseases.

2. Digital Health

According to a recent Business Models in Digital Health report by Rock Health, consumers are willing to spend $14 billion dollars on digital health technology products. The growth of the digital health space is sparking a wave of new entrepreneurs dedicated to solving large-scale problems in the industry. Digital health accelerators such as Rock Health, Blueprint Health, NY Digital Health, and others devoted to providing seed capital, mentorship, and partnerships to improve the healthcare industry.

Venture capitalists are taking notice with the amount of venture dollars pouring into digital heath startups this year, surpassing total funding in 2011 by July of this year. Expect more startups and interest in digital health to continue over years to come. The benefits of digital health will reinforce Edison’s vision of cause and prevention of diseases.

Rock Health Report: Digital Health Start-ups Funding

3. Telehealth/Remote Patient Monitoring

Growing healthcare costs, emergency room overcrowding, lack of primary care physicians, and a growing elderly population has made the home the new hospital of the future. The remote patient monitoring market is expected to double by 2016 to $20.9 billion. Expect to see the adoption of wireless patient-monitoring devices, such as blood pressure monitors and glucose meters, to transmit patient data between different locations using wireless networks increase in 2013.

With the rise of Patient- Centered Medical Homes, ACOs, and other emerging healthcare delivery models, healthcare organizations will need to engage patients in ways that increase quality, reduce cost, and improve their overall healthcare experience.

Conclusion:

Moving forward in 2013, the benefits of healthcare IT will continue to evolve and play a key role in new healthcare delivery models as it evolves towards evidence based care. mHealth, digital health, telehealth/remote patient monitoring, and many others identified will continue to increase their footprint in this growing industry. Where do you see Healthcare IT over the next 5 years? What are some of our key challenges and barriers to achieving Edison’s vision of healthcare?